New fishing machine!

[Redthies]

I’ve been shopping for a bigger boat lately, as we are expecting our third dog to arrive in a few weeks. Our current flat bottom Jon boat is fine for the wife and I and our Weimaraner and Dachshund, but the younger of those two just turned 10, and our rule is to spice things up with a puppy when the youngest hits 10. We went to visit the puppies on Tuesday, and on the way home stopped in to see my wife’s sister and her husband on the small island they live on. I mentioned the search for a new boat and he said “you can have mine for free... I’m tired of looking at it”. Well, being a savvy shopper, I of course said yes. So I hitched it up and dragged it home.

Now as generous as Gord is, he is at least that same level of disinterested in doing maintenance on something he has decided to not like anymore. The boat was put away without any preparations for winter, or preventative maintenance done. The steering has seized up at the motor, and I found out today it’s leaking gear oil out of the prop shaft seal. I have yet to fire it up, but I gave it a good cleaning, charged the battery (then found a second battery later), and made it a whole lot more presentable. Luckily I’m working on an Airstream for the son of our local Grady White dealer, who is also a Merc dealer. They are going to swap me some hours and get the steering and engine squared away.

It’s a KMV 528 CC, which is a Norwegian designed hull that is on par with Boston Whaler for seaworthiness, and apparently is a very stable boat at rest or low speed as the hull is a sort of displacement / deep vee hybrid. They claim it will plane faster than a conventional deep vee with 25% less power needed to do it. It also will float highenough to run the engine with a full load and 7” hole through the hull. Some big claims. I’m hoping to not have to test the last one! Some pics below of both new bird dog and new boat:

[BrokenolMarine]

Nice. Both new additions look good.
I really like the chocolate one.

[Redthies]

Chocolate? You mean the Weimaraner? There are moments of fear of not sleeping, but we are definitely excited about her arrival!

[JEBar]

nice on both .... out of a need for more room for his family and dogs, our youngest son just purchased a center console .... we went out it in for the first time on Memorial Day .... must say we were impressed by the room and versatility .... looking forward to your ongoing fishing and recreation reports

[Hatchdog]

After reading your text I expected to see a wreck of a boat when I got to the pictures. Looks like at least he kept the hull somewhat clean and maintained. (Understand the pics are after you gave it some love). That’s a nice looking boat and looks to be great for the clan you plan to bring along. Great looking pups too, we’re still waiting to get our pup and my wife spoke with the breeder the other day. Looks like we are number 27 on the list.

Enjoy both new additions.

[markiver54]

All looks great!!
Nice boat, especially at that price!
If I could caption the one pic, it looks like Mom is thinking, " Will they ever finish "

[Ernie]

Like Hatchdog I was surprised by the boat pics. Looks great. So do the pups.

[Redthies]

If I could caption the one pic, it looks like Mom is thinking, " Will they ever finish "

You’d be right. She definitely wants it over. Their teeth are at the needle phase, and she had some very sore looking teats!


The boat is definitely a great deal at the price, but the steering is seized and he was hammering on the linkage etc. There might be a bunch of expensive parts that need replacing. I’m hoping to get the existing motor running reliably, but not sure how much that’s going to take. My Mercury guys are dropping by this evening and will take a look. I charged up both batteries so will try to fire it up tonight.

[markiver54]

Good luck with the boat James!

[daytime dave]

Both will take some working with. I'm sure you will get both to your liking and have them both to where you want them some time down the road. Good luck with both. One may be easier than the other.

[JEBar]

I’m hoping to get the existing motor running reliably, but not sure how much that’s going to take. My Mercury guys are dropping by this evening and will take a look.

how'd it go

[Redthies]

We got it fired up. Aimed that 1000 CCs of free flowing two stroke goodness pointed at our neighbor who revs the crap out of his open piped Harley all the time. It felt a bit cathartic!

We compression tested it too, and while not new, all three cylinders were in spec. Changed the lower unit oil, and now we just need to get the steering cable replaced and I can take it for a test run. I’ve been spraying the cable ends with PB Blaster daily as it is still seized.

[Redthies]

Update time, and it’s a BIG one. I got the new steering cable in, and took it down to the river with a friend in his freshly built 17’ aluminum center console along as a tow boat. I didn’t end up needing him since the engine on my boat would not stay running long enough to put it in gear so we never left the dock. I took it to my Merc dealer friends shopand had his tech have a look at it. He said I “might” be able to get it running ok with about a $1500 investment, but that it would never truly be reliable...

So, on to Craigslist it went. After spelling out very clearly the work it needed, and the fact that a re-power was the best option, I came up with a price for the trailer, hull, and 8 hp Suzuki kicker. I must have been low, as I had a dozen responses in the first 12 hours. I sold it the next day for full asking, which coincidentally was $190 shy of what I needed to buy this:

[Redthies]

Well, ok, not EXACTLY that, but other than not getting a center console, and it being 12” shorter, that’s where I wound up.

I ordered a 2022 Tracker Grizzly with 50 hp Merc with electric start, power trim/tilt and heated tiller. For fly fishing and duck hunting, the center console would just be a pain. I’ll order up some seats, navigation lights, bilge pump and switch / fuse box. I enjoy planning how I want my own vehicles, so this should be a simple, but satisfying build. The unfortunate part is I probably won’t get to take delivery until December. I’m hoping for October, but it’s looking like it may be longer.

[markiver54]

Good things come to those willing to wait...so I've heard. Good luck James, looks awesome!

[JEBar]

Tracker makes a good boat .... it should serve you well .... looking forward to your ongoing reports

[Redthies]

Thanks guys! Luckily I have a Tracker 1436 with 9.9 Merc on it to use for the summer. I’ll keep that for the tiny lakes where there is no launch. It is a 2017 model and in my area I could easily sell it for 3x what I paid for it, but that’s not my style. This is all driven by the arrival of the new terrorizer...

Once she is the same size as Dexter, the two knuckleheads could easily capsize us in the smaller boat. It’s just too light and narrow for youthful exuberance!

[Redthies]

Tracker makes a good boat .... it should serve you well

There are more than a few folks out there who turn their noses up at Tracker and say that Lund, Lowe and G3 are all “way better”. I’ve looked at all the construction, material thickness, hull angles etc, and frankly, the Tracker uses the exact same materials, has better angles and has a lifetime structural warranty. Then factor in that the Tracker is literally HALF the cost of a Lund or Lowe... I’m really not sure why people buy the other brands. They might be slightly better fit and finish,but it’s just an aluminum boat, not a piano! I think it will be scary fast with the 50 on it, as it’s only a 600 lb boat, but there was so little difference in cost between the 40 and 50, and they are the exact same weight and displacement. It made sense to put the maximum motor on and “future proof” any weight demands I have as time passes.

Keep your fingers crossed that it shows up by mid October so I can use it on my west coast deer hunt in early November.

[markiver54]

Could not agree more! Be sure to take those beautiful companions with you! , they are beautiful...I'm jealous.

[BigAl52]

Enjoy the new boat when you get it. Sounds like it will be nice. Boats have sure gone up in price the last few years. Like everything else